Vehicle mounted machine guns

[B.T.]

I am very uncertain, how to solve "Firing" tasks with Machine Guns attached to vehicles. There are two different things, that I'd like to have your opinion on:

1) Firing with a co-axial MG on MBTs and IFVs:
If I understand it correctly, the person, firing a co-ax, uses the same optic and firing system as he uses, when firing the main-armament. I therefore think , it should be used with the same skill. The weapon is different, but the gunner of a MBT just pulls another trigger/pushes another button He does not really lay his hands on the MG.
This is no problem, if you have a vehicle like a Marder or M2/M3 Bradley, because both weapons (co-ax and autocannon) use the same skill. But what happens if you are firing the onboard M240 (co-ax!) from the turret of a M1 Abrams?
BTW: Does the firing character on a Bradley fires the TOW with the same optic/fire-device, or does he really uses another device for aiming (Yes, I know that you can't fire the TOW, when the Bradley is on the move!)?

2) What about the recoil of vehicle mounted MGs? I know, that such a weapon can be attached in various ways, what means: You have to look at every single situation.
- If a MG is attached with a homemade "pintle mount", say on a truck, the usual prodedure is okay: The MG may fire normally with the recoil value with bipod.
- If the vehicle has some specialized mounting system (For example: M1025 weapon carrier), does the firer use the tripod recoil or does the mounting system competely negate the recoil?
- And what about the M2 .50 cal for the commander of a M1 or M113? How does the mounting system work? And what does this mean for the recoil: Neglect or tripod mounted?
- What about a M60 or M240, fired from the passanger roof shields on a M113 ACAV?

All other weapons use the info from the weapon chard: If a character fires a MG from the open roof hatch of a M113, he may use his bipod or fire it from the shoulder. The basic rules make tasks harder, depending on the movement.
A Character, who fires from a gun port, has no benefits regarding recoil, right?

[pmulcahy11b]

You know, there are just so many things that GDW never fleshed out for the T2K game. That's why we're here.

[atiff]

Originally Posted by B.T.

1) Firing with a co-axial MG on MBTs and IFVs:

2) What about the recoil of vehicle mounted MGs?

I don't know if this is 'right', but this is what I do:

1) Each weapon uses the skill of that weapon, regardless of the sight involved (common or not). I figure part of the weapon skill is not just about knowing how to fire it, but knowing how to employ it. So a coax MG uses Autogun skill, etc.

2) As a rule of thumb, I say:
- a permanent mounting (e.g., coax, on a gun shield, etc) the recoil is ignored
- on a quick-take-down mount (e.g., pintle mount, and including firing ports) the recoil is as if the weapon was on a tripod. If the weapon doesn't have tripod stats (e.g., an AK-74) I halve the base recoil.

It's quick and dirty, but I don't mess around with fine details too much in my games. I'm the kind of guy who rolls the dice and looks up the modifiers afterwards, it if looks like they might matter.

Hope that's useful
Andrew

[Adm.Lee]

Originally Posted by atiff

1) Each weapon uses the skill of that weapon, regardless of the sight involved (common or not). I figure part of the weapon skill is not just about knowing how to fire it, but knowing how to employ it. So a coax MG uses Autogun skill, etc.

2) As a rule of thumb, I say:
- a permanent mounting (e.g., coax, on a gun shield, etc) the recoil is ignored
- on a quick-take-down mount (e.g., pintle mount, and including firing ports) the recoil is as if the weapon was on a tripod. If the weapon doesn't have tripod stats (e.g., an AK-74) I halve the base recoil.

That sounds right to me.

[B.T.]

Originally Posted by atiff

Hope that's useful

It is, indeed!

Thanks, I'll try this solution in the next FtF.
This will be tomorrow evening

[Legbreaker]

Originally Posted by atiff

- on a quick-take-down mount (e.g., pintle mount, and including firing ports) the recoil is as if the weapon was on a tripod. If the weapon doesn't have tripod stats (e.g., an AK-74) I halve the base recoil.

In my mind if there's only one point of contact like a free moving pintle, then bipod recoil should be used, if it's a fixed mount where the weapon can be locked onto the target area, like a proper tripod allows, then tripod recoil should apply.
Firing ports by their very nature shouldn't allow any reduction in recoil, unless specifically mated to the weapon - the M2 Bradley and M231 for example, or an AK which has been locked into the port of a BTR or BMP. In these cases a reduction of one point may be justifiable, but range would still be limited to Close as per the rules, and accuracy further modified by movement of both vehicle and target.